Raymond farm a refuge for Lincoln wolf-dog hybrid

Wednesday

Feb 19, 2014 at 12:01 AM

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - The owner of an unusual wolf hybrid dog has found a temporary home for his pet outside Lincoln city limits. In doing so, Alex Kaftan has complied with an order to remove his dog, Mars, who has been relocated to a Raymond farm where he can play with another dog and a puppy, the Lincoln Journal Star said (http://bit.ly/1eLKJqb ). "It's kind of sad to open the door and hear silence," said Kaftan, 27, who was used to Mars jumping up and down when he returned from his classes as a law student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Last week a judge denied Kaftan's motion to let the dog remain in Lincoln. City officials had said wolf-dog crossbreeds such as Mars are barred by Lincoln ordinance. "The ordinance is worded in a way that would make all dogs in Lincoln illegal," Kaftan told Omaha television station KETV. Kaftan said Mars is a Czechoslovakian vlcak (VUHL'-chak). The Czechoslovakian Vlcak Club of America says on its website that German shepherds were experimentally crossed in 1955 with Carpathian wolves. In 1965, after the experiment was ended, a breeding plan for the progeny was in place. The Czechoslovakian vlcak has been recorded in the American Kennel Club's Foundation Stock Service since 2001. Kaftan's attorney has said that neither of Mars' parents was a wolf. An online petition calling on the city to let Mars return to Lincoln has already received more than 4,200 signatures. He hopes the petition shows local officials that people want the ordinance changed. Kaftan said he plans more legal action so he can move Mars back home to Lincoln.